Maven Exploration Closes Seed Round Above Goal, Begins Project Due Diligence Across Canadian Jurisdictions

Maven Exploration Inc. (“Maven”), a privately-held Canadian junior mineral exploration company, today announced the close of its seed round and the start of due diligence on multiple properties across Canadian jurisdictions. The round closed on Friday, May 1, 2026, with committed investment exceeding the company's initial goal by approximately 20 percent.

Maven Exploration Inc. (“Maven”), a privately-held Canadian junior mineral exploration company, today announced the close of its seed round and the start of due diligence on multiple properties across Canadian jurisdictions. The round closed on Friday, May 1, 2026, with committed investment exceeding the company's initial goal by approximately 20 percent.

Maven was incorporated on January 6, 2026, and opened its seed round on February 17 with a presentation to approximately 50 friends and family. The presentation introduced the company's approach to the next era of mining, grounded in transparency, accessibility, and long-term stewardship. By the close of The Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada’s 2026 convention, the company had already exceeded its initial seed round goal.

The investor profile reflects the company's founding thesis. The founders believe that for mining to be successful in the new geopolitical and economic environment, it should focus on building for everyone in society.

Proof points include:

• Fifty-five percent of the funding came from women, both inside and outside the mining industry.

• Forty-five percent came from men, both inside and outside the industry.

• Fifty percent of the overall investment came from female investors

• The mix demonstrates investor confidence in a women-led junior exploration company and signals interest from sources of funding the mining industry has not historically reached.

"This round closed with the people we wanted in the room," said Beth Borody, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Maven Exploration. "Women and men from across and beyond the mining industry chose to back a company that will share its work as it goes. That investor profile is the foundation we wanted, and it tells us the appetite for radically accessible mining is real."

The funds raised will support working capital and project acquisition. The company has aligned its acquisition criteria with the Government of Canada's critical mineral policy and recent guidance on major project development, which prioritizes the exploration and development of minerals essential to clean energy, defence, manufacturing, and technology.

Due diligence is now underway on multiple properties. Maven evaluates each potential acquisition through four lenses, including:

• The provincial regulatory environment and the project acquisition process are specific to that jurisdiction.

• The deposit quality, considering both the geological and commodity context of the property and the future requirements of mining and processing.

• The rights holder, community, and environmental context surrounding the target.

• The strategic fit for future development with institutional partners.

Maven was founded by Beth Borody, Chief Executive Officer, Peggy Bell, Chief of Staff, Brand, and Operations, Allison Coppel, Chief Sustainability Officer, and Kelly Ward, Advisor. The founding team brings combined experience across mining operations, sustainability, finance, analytical laboratory operations, and corporate strategy.

Definitions of Terms Used in this Press Release

Seed round. A seed round is the first formal stage of investment that a company raises from outside investors. It comes after the founders have invested their time, money, and ideas in the business, and before the company is large enough to attract larger institutional funding rounds. The money raised in a seed round is used to build the company's foundation.

For Maven, that means funding the early work needed to evaluate properties, develop systems, and set the company up to acquire its first project. Seed investors take on more risk than later investors because the company is still in its earliest stage, and they accept that risk because they believe in the people, the approach, and the long-term potential.

The Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada (PDAC). Each year, the association hosts the world's largest mining convention in Toronto, drawing tens of thousands of geologists, mining executives, investors, government representatives, and Indigenous leaders from more than a hundred countries. The convention is where the mining industry comes together to share research, evaluate new projects, build partnerships, and raise investment.

For a company like Maven, attending PDAC is a way to connect with potential partners, meet value-aligned industry professionals, and signal to the broader market that Maven is a serious participant in the Canadian mining sector. PDAC 2026 took place in March of this year, and the conversations at the convention helped Maven exceed its seed-round goal by the time the conference closed.

Junior mineral exploration company. The mining industry is generally divided into three categories. Producers operate active mines and sell different commodities. Developers are advancing a known deposit toward production. Junior exploration companies, the category Maven belongs to, focus on the earliest stage of the work, which is finding and evaluating mineral deposits in the ground. Junior exploration companies do not run mines and do not yet have producing assets. The work is research-driven and involves studying geology, evaluating properties, and gathering the information needed to determine whether a piece of land holds minerals worth developing.

Many discoveries that eventually become mines start with a junior exploration company doing this early work. Juniors take on the highest exploration risk in the industry, and they play a critical role in maintaining the pipeline of future projects. Junior exploration companies fill a critical gap in the project-to-mine development pipeline, as they are often acquired by larger operators to advance projects into active mining.

Canada's critical mineral policy. Critical minerals are the metals and elements that modern economies depend on for clean energy, defence, manufacturing, and technology. For example, copper supports the electrical grid, lithium powers batteries, and nickel is used in stainless steel and electric vehicles. The list also includes rare earth elements, cobalt, graphite, and others.

The Government of Canada has identified a list of minerals it considers critical to the country's economic and security interests, and has committed federal policy and funding to support their exploration, development, and processing. The policy includes priority project designations, infrastructure investment, and partnership frameworks with provinces and Indigenous nations. For an exploration company, alignment with this policy matters because it signals that the work being done supports a broader national priority and may benefit from supportive policy and infrastructure as projects advance.

About Maven Exploration

Maven Exploration Inc. is a privately held Canadian junior mineral exploration company incorporated in January 2026, focused on precious and critical mineral exploration in Canadian jurisdictions. Maven was created by women, but we are building for everyone. The company operates on a principle of radical accessibility, sharing project evaluation, operational decisions, and progress as the work unfolds. Maven believes mining can be done in a way that invites broader participation, builds long-term trust, and leaves enduring legacies for the people, the land, and the future generations who depend on the minerals it produces.

Follow Maven on LinkedIn and Instagram.

Media and Investor Inquiries

Beth Borody
Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer
Maven Exploration Inc.
beth.borody@mavenexploration.com